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Well, 2005 is just about over. I think this is going to be my last post in 2005 because of partying and everything tomorrow. It’s been a great year for this blog. Started in May and readership has only gone up. Thanks for reading and commenting and linking to me everyone! I really appreciate it and can’t thank you enough.

Now, if you’ve got nothing else to do, Indie for Dummies has put up the top 100 albums of the year as decided by dozens upon dozens of bloggers. Chek it out, and I’ll see you in ’06.

I’ve said it before that my local town is pretty barren of music. The only thing that’s come from Tyler it seems is Eisley. The band is all siblings, for those of you that don’t know. Their parents own a church/coffee shop that they used to play at a lot. The first and only time I ever saw them they were playing there, and a couple bands opened for them, namely Ester Drang and fellow locals The Connotations. Now I think Eisley is a pretty sleepy bunch and didn’t enjoy them too much. Ester Drang was along the same lines.

The Connotations, in my opinion, should have been the band to blow up. Their songs were pop-perfect and everyone in the band have the nicest personalities. The band was still in high school at the time, and when college time came I think they started to break apart. Most of them went to UT at Austin and they made a few songs and broke up. I am glad to hear, though, that their lead singer is still making music and actually was just signed to a label.

His name is Taylor Muse and he goes by the name Quiet Company. He was signed to Northern Records and is releasing an album, Shine Honestly, in spring of 2006.

I got an e-mail concerning an outstanding band from, you guessed it, Sweden this morning! I sure am glad I did. The band is The Second Band. They’ve released an EP and have some demos to shop around with, plus an upcoming EP in 2006. The track I got is from that EP. The song, “Wild is the Wind,” is all piano and handclaps. The singer’s voice sort of reminds me of James Mercer of the shins. Anyway, the song is really great, so I checked out more they had on their website and everythng there seems to be amazing too. Please check them out, and I’m sure you will unless you’re burnt-out on Swedes. Which is bad because I’m sure there are loads more that deserve your attention!

Also, if you didn’t know, SXSW is comin’ at you from Austin, TX March 15-19. Invited guests (they may not all show up at the fest) include, Annie, Arctic Monkeys, Belle and Sebastian, Boy Least Likely To, Neko Case, Cat Power, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Cribs, The Duke Spirit, Editors, Jose Gonzalez, The Go! Team,the list goes on and on and on. Check out the full list of invitees here.

Also! Not to be missed are the music panels and speakers. Neil Young is the keynote speaker this year, and other speakers include Sam Moore, the Pretenders, and Billy Bragg. Some of the panels would be great for independent bands to attend, with topics like touring, distribution, and there is even going to be one about music blogging. It is all not to be missed!

I’ve talked about the Long Blondes before, but they just released a killer new single in the UK called “Separated by Motorways.” They’re a very catchy band and they’ve released a few singles. I can’t understand how they haven’t been signed yet. I don’t know, but hopefully it’ll be soon. You can download “Separated by Motorways” over at Green Pea-ness.

It seems like a really long time ago that it was released, but Iron and Wine’s collaborative EP with Calexico, In the Reins, is still making waves. The bands will appear on Late Night with Craig Ferguson next Friday (Wolf Parade will be on the same show Tuesday) and Big O Magazine graciously put this live recording of the bands’ performance at the Triple Door in Seattle.

I think these tracks have made the rounds before, but it’s nice to have a trusty server hosting them all. Anyway, go here to download the show.

I’m really really enjoying the last one. I had The Blow‘s album Bonus Album but didn’t pay much attention. What caught my attention about her (because the band is essentially Khaela Maricich) was the similar one-woman show thing she has going that Wynne Greenwood of Tracy + the Plastics also had. I think they both even have similar voices and both use video when performing.

Anyway, the album was actually produced by Jona Bechtolt, aka Y.A.C.H.T., which explains why their beats sound very similar. He also is in a music video for the song I’m putting up here.

Nellie McKay has been up to quite a lot. She left her label, Columbia, and is releasing her sophomore album Pretty Little Head all on her own. She’s also going to be on Broadway in 2006 in The Threepenny Opera with Alan Cumming.

According to this Billboard article, the dispute has something to do with Sony wanting to cut out seven songs from the album, although I’m sure there are more reasons. There was a live DVD slated to come out the same day as the record too, I guess. McKay is planning on releasing the new album on the Internet in January and on disc in February.